blog posts Milk to the rescue for diabetics? Illinois project creates first insulin-producing cow Mar 13, 2024 10:45 am An unassuming brown bovine from the south of Brazil has made history as the first transgenic cow capable of producing human insulin in her milk. Professor Matt Wheeler helped develop the breakthrough bovine. Spooky Spaces at U of I: The steam tunnels Oct 28, 2022 10:30 am You can't go inside them - they're dangerous and you'd be arrested - but the steam tunnels under the campus serve important functions. Plus, the old brick tunnelways produce weird noises that complete their creepy image. Preserving Illinois forests, one landowner at a time Apr 28, 2023 10:15 am Illinois Extension forestry and research specialist Christopher Evans describes leading the first field day of a Beginning Forest Landowner Program to give landowners the experience, skills and connections needed to better manage their forests. LK-99 isn’t a superconductor — how science sleuths solved the mystery Aug 18, 2023 3:00 pm Nature (Aug. 16) Researchers were 'very precise about (the temperature at which LK-99 showed a tenfold drop in resistivity): 104.8 C,' says Prashant Jain, a professor of chemistry at Illinois. 'I was like, wait a minute, I know this temperature.' No. 24 Women's Basketball headed to Minnesota, first test as ranked squad Jan 14, 2023 1:00 pm Illinois women's basketball is back in action at Minnesota on Sunday, Jan. 15, with a 2 p.m. CT tip. Illinois is off to a 14-3 start under first year head coach Shauna Green, one of the best starts in program history. Champaign-raised, U of I grad actor gets Broadway shot in 'Hamilton' Feb 1, 2023 11:15 am News Gazette (Feb. 1) Jonathan Butler-Duplessis, a Champaign schools and U of I grad, will make his Broadway debut Thursday, playing the iconic Aaron Burr from hit rap-musical 'Hamilton.' A century after his championships, world-famous steer welcomes visitors to Stock Pavilion Aug 17, 2022 11:45 am A statue of Broadus White Socks, a world-famous, two-time prize-winning steer (1922), installed at the south entrance of the Stock Pavilion, caps decades of renovations there. Read Broadus's facinating life story, and his post-life story. New study links air pollution to global levels of antibiotic resistance Aug 10, 2023 11:00 am USA Today (Aug 10) Worldwide, deaths already top 5 million per year and are expected to grow into the tens of millions within a few decades. 'We are truly right now in the midst of this crisis,' says U of I microbiologist Brenda Wilson. There's a new sculpture on the Quad - and it's MAMMOTH Mar 23, 2023 4:15 pm The next, and past, big thing: The great wooly mammoth is back… Visible to all, not an apparition… Near the University of Illinois Main Quad. Monogamous prairie voles reveal the neurobiology of love Jan 17, 2023 11:45 am Scientific American (Jan. 17) Nearly 50 years ago, U of I ecologist Lowell Getz discovered that prairie voles were monogamous. His research teams went on to document their social behaviors and the hormones that underpin them. U of I's ballbot wheelchair may be the future of mobility assistance Mar 22, 2023 9:45 am The ballbot wheelchair may be the future of mobility assistance. Researchers from across the U of I have created a robotic wheelchair that uses a single, rolling ball to provide a handsfree, intuitive, and flexible device for users. Why reports of period weirdness after covid shots were ignored Apr 18, 2023 10:30 am The Washington Post (April 18) U of I anthropology professor Kate Clancy writes about her research into the menstrual side effects of coronavirus vaccines and how early claims of such side effects were ignored and ridiculed. Unprecedented compound takes a step toward breast cancer clinical trials Nov 27, 2023 10:30 am TEQ103 targets estrogen receptor alpha (ERα) positive breast cancer cells and kills only the cells with an activated stress response, the so-called a-UPR. Michigan lawmakers target AI-generated deepfake political ads Oct 19, 2023 11:45 am Bloomberg Law (Oct. 18) Experts can examine footage at 'the pixel level' to verify authenticity, but 'it’s really difficult' for ordinary people to distinguish between a real human talking and a digital counterfeit, says U of I professor Gang Wang. Coleman Hawkins: Family Man Mar 6, 2023 11:45 am For Coleman Hawkins, Fighting Illini power forward, family is at the heart of everything. To really know him, you have to know his family. A deaf football team and the birth of the huddle Sep 21, 2022 1:00 pm The Guardian (Sept. 21) Legendary U. of I. coach Robert Zuppke, who is widely credited as the inventor of the huddle, admitted that he got the idea from a deaf football team. Carle Illinois College of Medicine behind research that may help detect concussions Nov 27, 2023 10:45 am WGN-TV (Nov. 21) New research from the U. of I. may help doctors do a better job of detecting concussions. U. of I. medical student Annabelle Shaffer discusses the new study. A brief history of Project Gutenberg Mar 15, 2023 12:00 pm 500 years after Gutenberg began using his printing press to publish books for the masses, U of I student Michael S. Hart uploaded the text of the Declaration of Independence to the nascent internet, signaling the beginning of the e-book age. Five Urbana-Champaign faculty members named University Scholars Mar 24, 2023 10:15 am Five U of I professors have been named University Scholars in recognition of their excellence in teaching, scholarship and service. The award is presented by the University of Illinois System to faculty members from the Chicago, Springfield and Urbana universities. Why do we love horror films? Oct 25, 2022 9:45 am Horror films dominate Netflix queues right now. English professor Jim Hansen spoke about why we love horror. He says it’s because horror films let us 'choose the shape of our fears and then to face up to those fears.' Ruth emerges as first Illini Big Ten champion since 2018 Mar 11, 2024 8:15 am '(Edmond) Ruth is really starting to cement himself as a national title threat. Him becoming the first Big Ten champion for us since (now-assistant coach for the Illini) Isaiah Martinez is truly incredible,' said head coach Mike Poeta. Grange Grove entertainment lineup set for football season Aug 17, 2022 10:45 am Illinois' premier pregame tailgating location will once again be open with a full slate of entertainment planned for the season. Five years and $150 million later, what a mega-business school can do Oct 27, 2022 2:15 pm Poets & Quants (Oct. 27) Larry and Beth Gies returned to Illinois to celebrate all that their pledge has helped to make possible. The list of achievements for what became the Gies College of Business is extraordinary by any standard. U of I's Center for Children's Books announces Blue Ribbon Winners Jan 5, 2023 10:15 am 'Readers will find a healthy variety of subjects and genres, and we even have a bonus of short story collections, a format we are always thrilled to see thrive,' says editor Kate Quealy-Gainer. Billions of cicadas are about to emerge. Cicadas on the menu? Mar 15, 2024 3:00 pm National Geographic (March 14) Some Americans plan to sauté some of this year’s double cicada brood. Cicadas are edible, according to U. of I. Extension. People eat them alongside other bugs – such as silkworms, locusts and crickets – worldwide. What a 19th-century farmer’s forgotten notes reveal about growing seasons May 31, 2023 11:00 am Smithsonian Magazine (May 31) Longer growing seasons can be problematic, says Christopher Evans, a U of I forest ecologist. 'The birds don’t have the food sources at the right time, or the pollinators that may pollinate these plants aren’t out yet.' Welcome to our newly admitted Class of 2028! Mar 1, 2024 2:30 pm We understand your concerns regarding the current financial aid delays, and we're sorry this is happening! If needed, we will change our FAFSA and college commitment deadlines. Our decision to change our deadlines will be announced no later than March 15. Before Jackie Robinson, Jorge Pasquel broke baseball’s color barrier — in Mexico Dec 7, 2022 11:15 am L.A. Times (Dec. 7) The Mexican League fully integrated pro baseball. It 'meant that you see each other as equals,' says U of I's Adrian Burgos. 'You share the locker room, the dugout space. It is a different dimension.' 'Cape lions' had an extremely rich variety of genes before extinction Mar 21, 2024 3:00 pm Earth.com (March 20) U of I researchers utilized genomics to explore whether the extinct Cape lion still influences the gene pool of existing lions, revealing unexpected genetic diversity. #FakeTok: How to create your own truth filter for TikTok Jul 31, 2023 10:45 am Chicago Sun-Times (July 27) U. of I. information sciences researcher Rachel Magee says that despite confusing messages circulating on social media, it can be a healthy place for young people to develop ideas and social circles. What does the film 'Oppenheimer' tell us about the development of the atomic bomb? Aug 1, 2023 10:15 am 'Oppenheimer' examines the process of building an organization of unprecedented scale and wrestles with how to view one individual’s decisions as relevant in the face of such a massive system, says Dean Kevin Hamilton. Genetically engineered plants: A glow in the dark petunia, bright purple tomatoes Feb 16, 2024 9:30 am Scientific American (Feb. 14) You can now pre-order a genetically engineered plant that glows continuously. 'People’s reactions to genetically modified plants are complicated,' says Steven Burgess, a U of I professor of plant biology. The rise in book bans, explained Jun 10, 2022 9:45 am The Washington Post (June 9): “Book banning” has become a catchall phrase, says Emily Knox, who teaches library science at the U. of I. and is the author of “Book Banning in 21st-Century America.” Illinois Volleyball unveils spring schedule Feb 7, 2024 8:00 am The Illini open the spring schedule with a match against DePaul on March 8. First serve from Huff Hall is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. CT. Admission is free. 2023 Beckman Institute Research Image contest winners Aug 31, 2023 1:45 pm 'This contest is just a small sample of the 40 academic units we represent, and it shows how many disciplines are impacted by the imaging facilities and capabilities here at Beckman. I love how the beauty and diversity of the science shines through.' Fighting Illini Athletics set to host Spring Sports Fest Apr 9, 2024 9:00 am Fighting Illini Athletics is set to host Spring Sports Fest from April 12-14, featuring 11 home events across four sports - Track & Field, Softball, Baseball, and Women's Tennis. Illini Men's Basketball opens Big Ten play Saturday at Rutgers Dec 1, 2023 8:15 am No. 24 Illinois begins its 119th season of league play Saturday afternoon at Rutgers (3 p.m. CT, BTN). Illinois is opening B1G play on the road for the sixth time in the last eight seasons. Terrance Shannon Jr: 'I'm Back' Jun 1, 2023 8:00 am Shannon is a major addition to the 2023-24 Illini lineup. He averaged 17.2 points, 4.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.3 steals in his inaugural season in Champaign, earning first-team All-Big Ten accolades. NASCAR in Chicago: How will downtown racing affect air quality? Jun 26, 2023 2:45 pm Chicago Tribune (June 26) 'They are now using E15 fuel, which has lower emissions.... But, at the end of the day, (race cars) are still having a very low efficiency. So there’s no way around that,' says atmospheric sciences professor Nicole Riemer. Alumna Ann Thayer Weldy helped readers find comfort—and themselves—in her books Jul 26, 2023 12:15 pm To the world, she became Ann Bannon, the name under which she published six lesbian pulp fiction novels. Over sixty years later, these books remain fundamental to the LGBTQ canon. $25M gift to support new interdisciplinary learning center Nov 3, 2022 9:15 am The South Campus Center for Interdisciplinary Learning will be a four-story building on Gregory Drive between the Business Instructional Facility and Huff Hall. Construction will begin in spring 2023 and is expected to be completed by early 2025. Illini Football accepts invitation to 2023 ReliaQuest Bowl Dec 5, 2022 8:45 am The Illinois football team has accepted an invitation to play in the 2023 ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa, Florida. Illinois will play Mississippi State at Raymond James Stadium on Monday, Jan. 2 at 11 a.m. CT on ESPN2. Illinois' Homecoming game time announced Oct 9, 2023 9:45 am Illinois' Homecoming game against Wisconsin on Saturday, Oct. 21 will kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT, the conference office announced on Monday. Television coverage for the game will be announced following games played on Oct. 14. Illini Baseball's weekend road trip at Coastal Carolina Mar 10, 2023 8:45 am Illinois baseball returns to action in Conway, S.C., facing the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers for three games and capping off its 13-game road trip to begin the season. The Illini earned their second-straight series win last week against Sam Houston. U of I's Discovery Partners Institute will launch cannabis research facility Dec 16, 2022 11:30 am Green Market Report (Dec. 15) Given its strengths in agriculture, genomics, medicine, 'It’s a natural for us to be a gathering point' for cannabis research, says DPI director Bill Jackson. 'It’s an industry Illinois wants to win in, ...that’s going to be sizable.' Launch of new Amazon-Illinois Center on AI for Interactive Conversational Experiences Mar 27, 2023 11:15 am 'To begin AICE will focus on a multimodal form of knowledge acquisition. Some tools intake only textual data, but a multimodal interface can continually learn and update knowledge from users through voice, text, image and video interactions...' Fighting Illini Hall of Fame Class of 2022 induction set for Sept. 23 Sep 16, 2022 9:00 am Illinois Athletics will formally induct 15 new members to the Hall of Fame Class of 2022 on Friday, Sept. 23, 6 PM at State Farm Center. The ceremony is open to all and admission is free. Posters will be available to the first 500 fans. Illinois Volleyball welcomes Northwestern for midweek clash at Huff Hall Nov 1, 2023 11:15 am Illinois volleyball goes for its sixth straight victory when the team hosts Northwestern at Huff Hall on Wednesday night. First serve on Big Ten Network is slated for 8 p.m. CT. Celebrate Black History Month at Illinois Feb 1, 2023 10:15 am Black History Month gives everyone the opportunity to share, celebrate and understand the impact of Black heritage and culture. Uase this site to find events and stories of impact from Black students, alumni, faculty and staff at U of I. On the trail of the Denisovans Mar 4, 2024 12:30 pm The New York Times (March 2) U of I anthropology professor Laura Shackelford said her team's discoveries raised the possibility that Denisovans and modern humans coexisted and interacted for tens of thousands of years.